Steve Raike & Ted Flato — Architects

“Understanding the people we design for and the place where we design is critically important, and while it sounds simple, it takes rigor and commitment.”

— Steve Raike & Ted Flato, architect

Other areas of the home that truly reflect how the homeowners live and their personalities include an office space, craft room, gym, and garage for the owners’ collection of classic muscle cars, all of which enjoy an immediate connection to the courtyard and can similarly support large events as secondary gathering spaces.

The region receives very little rainfall, so the design responds to the brightness and the dryness by tempering the light in the building through generous overhangs, which allow lots of reflected light but manage direct sunlight. The courtyard features a native plant palette with very low water requirements and creates a retreat from the natural landscape setting. The courtyard serves as an important stormwater retention function where in rain events — which are far apart but tend to be heavy — the rainfall is retained and allowed to slowly percolate into the water table rather than treated as runoff. Photovoltaics also generate clean energy from the sun as a partial offset of the home’s electrical needs.

Photography by Casey Dunn

Photography by Casey Dunn

Photography by Casey Dunn